Keep Moving On
by Whirlaway
Summary: Set post "Always" - Beckett and Castle continue on with what they've started while handling other issues such as Maddox and Kate's resignation. I wanted to try my hand at fanfiction! Hopefully I'm not out of my league here.
1. Waking Up

The sheets were grey, maybe grey blue, and much softer than her own. She was sure she had never been more comfortable than she was now, wrapped up in these sheets, scrawled across his bed, the feel of his fingers laced with hers. She had been wrapped up in his arms when they fell asleep last night, but at some point she had flipped over. Apparently her body craved his touch however because her hand had found his and latched on to it. And now here they laid, her on her stomach, him on his back, at least four feet of empty bed between them, but still connected. Yeah that's the way it had been since day one. No matter the distance between them, they were never really separate.

She hadn't wanted to open her eyes, but she had a habit of staying up late and getting up early so it made sense. But if she wasn't going to sleep, he wasn't going to sleep either. She had better activities in mind. She let go of his hand, rolled over and almost forgot about her little plan when a searing pain shot up her side. She winced silently, tossing the covers away from herself to examine the offending area.

The bruises covering her ribs and abdomen were purple and blue and quite large. Of course Castle chose that moment to wake up. Under normal circumstances she was sure he would love the idea of her completely naked and uncovered in his bed, but not today. Today she was sure he would be shocked by her discolored skin, and she wasn't wrong.

"Kate, oh my God, what happened?" Yeah, shocked is exactly what he was.

"I chased a ninja onto a roof, Rick. This is what I get." She motioned the length of her body with her hand, but he was in no mood for jokes.

"Seriously, it looks really bad. Why didn't you say anything last night?" He skimmed his hand along her abdomen, but she didn't flinch. It hardly hurt. He was being gentle, and she wanted him to touch her. She had wanted him to touch her for a while now, but fear had always been in her way. Well it wasn't in the way anymore, she reminded herself, grabbing hold of his chin and brushing her lips against his.

"I think we both know how preoccupied I was." She let their breath mingle together before kissing him again.

His hand tightened on her hip, and it took effort not to let on that his grip might hurt a little. She wrapped her fingers around his wrist, moving his hand upwards, and sealing her mouth to his. It was just like she remembered it, but memories couldn't hold a candle to what this lack of inhibition felt like. This was real, and they both knew it.

His lips left her own and her eyes fluttered open to reveal his head dipping, lowering his mouth to her neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her and fell back into the pillows. From there it was a frenzy of kisses, touches, whispered encouragement and firm confirmation of absolute bliss.

His hands traveled up and down her sides before finding purchase on her breast. His mouth followed his hands, lightly kissing, just enough to tease but not quite enough to please. He couldn't manage to stay away from her mouth for long though, and they frequently found themselves more intoxicated by their dueling tongues than anything else.

Her body was the first to cave, arching into his, betraying her need for him. She could feel his smile on his lips just as much as she could feel his hand slide down her stomach and between her legs. He let just one finger rest on her overly sensitive center and she hummed into his mouth, clearly enjoying every second of this. He increased the pressure, moving slowly, and she reveled in the slow build. He was good at not rushing things.

His free hand found her breast and his lips found her collarbone and she was sure she would die from sensory overload if he continued this way. But it would be a sweet death, probably the best way to die, so she ran her hands through his hair and let out a satisfied gasp when he slipped two fingers inside her to press him onwards.

His pace was excruciating. Just when she thought she would explode he would back off and let her come down from the high only to ramp her up again. She pulled him back to her mouth for a deep kiss, sucking his bottom lip into her mouth and letting her teeth scrape against it. She whispered his name into the side of his neck as she laid open mouthed kisses all along it and he got the message, sliding himself into her fully. She hugged herself tighter to him, digging her nails into his shoulders as she lost it right then. She could hear him laughing, obviously pleased with his performance thus far.

She let herself fall back into the pillows again, and he openly stared, drinking in every ounce of her. He was awfully still though, so she wiggled her hips and smiled.

"Come on Castle, I know we don't have all day," she teased.

He laughed again and moved slowly, pulling himself almost completely out of her before slamming himself back in and she loved it. They found themselves attached at the mouth again. Something about finally being able to kiss him made her never want to stop, but they had to breathe at some point so he diverted his attention to her neck, marking her in more than one place.

She took this opportunity to run her hands along his back, feeling the muscles ripple with his every movement. He was spurred on by her touch, increasing the speed and she wrapped her legs tightly around him to increase the friction. She dug her teeth into her bottom lip, willing herself to hold on until he was ready, but when his hand found its way to her center again she whimpered in pleasure. She could hear him panting now, obviously on the edge so she let herself go and brought him along with her. Yeah, they were just about perfect together.

He didn't collapse on top of her like he had last night, but this morning had been a little less physically taxing and he was too concerned with her injuries to do anything that might cause more damage. So they laid side by side, completely sated and catching their breaths before Kate rolled over and molded her body to his. Their legs tangled themselves together and his hand grabbed hold of hers and she was sure that it was always meant to be this way. They fit together just right.


	2. Mr Smith

**Okay so I'm obviously so new to fanfiction that I didn't even know how to put an author's note on the first chapter, but I'm making up for it now!**

**So AN for the first chapter: I know there isn't a lot of dialogue going on in that first chapter, but sometimes you just don't need to talk. Am I right? Not to worry though, I'm not afraid of a little conversation! So anyone who was concerned by the lack of speaking, don't fret. Also, interesting factoid, that first chapter was the first time I had ever written smut (outside of a creative writing class I took my freshman year of college – awkward…) so just know it only gets better from there!**

**And now AN for Ch. 2: Andrew Marlowe said that this whole Maddox thing wouldn't be a long and drawn out affair, so I'm not going to make it a long, drawn out affair either. I think the way I deal with it is reasonable and fair. I think Mr. Smith is a pretty smart guy and wouldn't be dumb enough to leave himself open to attack by these people who are obviously very dangerous. **

**And finally: I don't own these characters. I know, it's a sad story, but they really aren't mine. They weren't mine in the first chapter either!**

**Mr. Smith:**

Calm, that's what he needed to be right now. As much as he wanted to lose his temper and put this lackey in his place, he wouldn't. He was above such juvenile reaction and no doubt that's what this boy wanted.

Instead of filling his mouth with cutting words, he slowly poured himself a whiskey. He paused a moment before pouring a second glass and seating himself in the middle of his couch. He stared at the intruder who had honestly surprised him.

"What's your name boy?"

"It doesn't matter," the young man spat.

"You're right. It doesn't matter. Not to me and not to the people you work for. I'm glad you're aware of that." Mr. Smith knew his tone was patronizing, but this man needed to be put in his place.

"How about you just give me what I came for, or I'll kill you." The man raised his gun to emphasize just how serious he was. "After all I'm sure if I look long enough I can find it on my own."

Mr. Smith rested his hands behind his head and smiled slowly. This boy just didn't know what he had gotten himself into. Here he was, so confident. It was almost exciting to think of how floored he would be when this conversation was over.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. How about you sit down and have a drink." Mr. Smith tilted his head towards the second glass he had placed on the table. The man sat slowly, a smug smile still plastered across his face, his ego still fully intact. He drank the whole glass down, never taking his eyes of Mr. Smith. If only he knew how out of control this situation was about to become.

"Now, let me tell you how this is going to go…"

"No, let me tell _you_ how this is going to go, boy," Mr. Smith interrupted. His voice was stern as if he was scolding a child and his calm was quickly slipping, but he'd had just about enough of this boy's arrogance. "You're going to point that gun somewhere else and keep your mouth shut while I talk. And when I'm done with you, you're going to disappear on the same damn wind that blew you here in the first place. You think you can come into my house and start making demands. You got another thing coming, son."

The smug smile had all but fallen from the young man's face. Mr. Smith was sure that no one had ever talked to him like that, but there was no anger. In fact, the man sat the gun on the table in front of him and leaned back into his seat as if to say 'I'm listening.'

"Better," Mr. Smith began. "Now, you won't be getting any files from me and before you try to disagree with me on that let me tell you why. You see, I'm no fool. I've dealt with people like your bosses before; people who want me dead. Yet here I am, alive and well, because I'm smart. I make sure it's in people's worst interest to have me killed. Would you like to know how I've made sure your bosses wouldn't send someone like you to kill me?"

The young man smiled and chuckled apparently not believing that Mr. Smith was capable of eluding death, but he stayed silent anyways.

"Every morning at 8:15 on the dot, I have a video conference with a young man who is in possession of several copies of the information I have on your bosses. If I miss this video conference, the young man releases this information. If there are any visible signs of torture, this young man releases the information. If I tell the young man to release the information, he does what I tell him. Now I know what you're thinking. You're thinking you'll black mail me into keeping the information concealed while you get to go about your business, but no."

The smug look had finally completely fallen from the man's face and now he just looked annoyed. That was good. Mr. Smith was finally making some process.

"You won't touch Katherine Beckett or anyone she cares about. If you do, my associate will be instructed to release the information. Do you understand? And before you get any ideas, let me be the first to tell you, you will never find my associate. He's very good at what he does, and what he does is hide."

The man stood, grabbing the gun off the table and pointing it at Mr. Smith. That wasn't how this was supposed to go, but Smith was still in control.

"Go ahead, kill me. And kill Beckett and everyone she cares about, but then I suggest you run because the empire your bosses have built will come crashing down around them. And it won't matter who you kill at that point because all they'll want is your head. I'm sure they've got ten more boys just like you that they'll send to hunt you down. You won't make it two days."

The young man just stared at him thinking it over; trying to conjure up a way out of this. Apparently, he couldn't find one because he lowered his gun in defeat.

"Tell your bosses that unless they provoke me, their secrets are safe. Tell them I'll have words with Katherine Beckett; warn her never to dig into this again. Something tells me she'll listen when she realizes her life isn't the only one on the line. Now go on, get out of my home, and if I ever see you again, it'll be your bosses that pay."

"One condition," the young man finally spoke.

"What?"

"I get to send Katherine a warning as well. Let her know my bosses are serious. No one will be hurt, and I'll be out of the city within forty-eight hours." The man looked desperate. He was grasping at straws, trying to find a way to gain some small amount of control.

"Very well, do what you have to do, but if anyone she cares for is hurt, you know what happens."

The man nodded, his eyes dark, his face full of anger and maybe a dash of humiliation, but he brushed past Mr. Smith and left all the same. He didn't even utter a single parting word. When the door finally slammed shut, Mr. Smith let out a long, shutting sigh. It was easy to put on a tough front when you had to, but now he didn't have to be brave. Now he could let his hands shake with fear and try to calm himself with the amber whiskey sitting at his bar. He didn't want to die, and he knew he wouldn't so long as that damn girl stopped sticking her nose where it didn't belong.

**Author's note:**

**Okay, a bit short, but I think you get the point. There's nothing Maddox can do without compromising his bosses. I'm sure Andrew Marlowe has a much more exciting plan for Maddox, but like I said earlier, I'm not Andrew Marlowe.**

**A note on updates - I have a clear picture of where this story is headed, but I still have to write it which takes time. Literally, even if I'm in a writing frenzy, it takes time to actually type the words. So patience is key. I want to update twice a week, maybe more, but some weeks may be light. The creative process is just that, a process! But I promise I will continue on :) **

**Thanks for the reviews so far! Look for updates soon!**


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